United States: District Attorneys Want More Power to Combat Corruption

Amid a wave of public-corruption cases that federal prosecutors have brought against New York lawmakers, state prosecutors are hoping to bolster their power to do the same.

Under current laws, New York’s district attorneys, who focus much of their work on violent crimes, have less authority over public corruption than federal prosecutors. White-collar investigations in New York are often left to U.S. attorneys such as Manhattan’s Preet Bharara, whose office has filed corruption charges against high-ranking Albany legislators this year.

Sen. Brad Hoylman, a Manhattan Democrat, has introduced a package of bills that would give district attorneys broader powers to combat and punish public corruption at the local and state level. The bills were written following recommendations from Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. and other district attorneys as part of a white-collar-crime task force they convened two years ago.